The present invention relates generally to a technique for processing a job in a printing system and, more particularly to a system in which deferred assembly of a job is facilitated through the use of one or more place holders provided with the job.
Electronic printing systems typically include an input section with an image capture subsystem, a controller, sometimes referred to as an electronic subsystem and an output section or print engine. In one type of electronic printing system, manufactured by Xerox Corporation, known as the DocuTech electronic printing system ("DocuTech" is a trademark used by "Xerox Corporation in the sale of printing systems") a job can be inputted to the input section from, among other sources, a network or scanner. An example of an input section with both network and scanner inputs is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,3402 to Prokop et al. (Issued: Dec. 8, 1992).
When a scanner is employed to generate the job, image bearing documents are scanned so that the images therein are converted to image data for use in making prints. When a network is used to generate the job, a stream of data, including a various job related instructions and image data, expressed in terms of a page description language is captured, decomposed and stored for printing. As is known, a network job can have its origin in a remote client, such a work station, or a print server with a storage device. Jobs provided at the input section may be stored in a memory section, such as a disk drive.
Electronic printing systems, such as the DocuTech electronic printing system, are typically full featured, and various ones of the features provide one or more functions to be performed on the job. For example, a job captured at the input image section for storage may undergo a significant amount of image processing allowing for the minimization of image related artifacts and various electronic pages may be edited after the job has been suitably stored Pursuant to outputting the stored job, a host of finishing operations, such as stapling, folding, and trimming may be performed on the hardcopy version of the job to optimize its appearance.
In view of the complexity of a given job, it may be desirable to "build" a job on a segment-by-segment basis. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,081,494 to Reed et al. (Issued: Jan. 14, 1992) various parts of a job are merged through use of a job supplement mode. Through this mode, the job supplement function is used to append content to a job as it is being scanned into the printing system. That is, when the job supplement mode is engaged, any number of additional documents or groups of documents maybe scanned in with the job currently being scanned. Upon supplementing the job at the scanner, an END JOB icon is selected, and the supplemented job is stored in a memory section of the printing system.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,087 to Salgado (Issued: Nov. 26, 1996) contemplates the technique of constructing a multi-segment print job from multiple local and remote sources on a network using a network interface to identify print job segments and locations of segments on the network by entering a start build print job function at the network interface, identifying each segment of the print job including segment location, specifying print job characteristics such as quantity and quality for each segment, entering an end build print job function at the network interface, and identifying a printing device on the network, whereby each segment of the print job is accessed and distributed to the printing device to complete the multi-segment print job.
It will be further noted that completion of a job may, under certain circumstances be best delayed until a selected event occurs. As disclosed by U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/1612,648, filed by Farrell et al. on Mar. 8, 1996, a triggering event may constitute the provision of a resource that was not available at a previous time during which a subject job was being developed. In accordance with the '648 Patent Application a job is developed to an extent possible and then set aside in anticipation of a triggering event that is expected to occur at a future time. When the triggering event occurs, development of the job is completed and the job is stored in a memory section. Disclosures relating to delayed execution of a job can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,843,5712 Notermans et al. (issued; Jun. 27, 1989) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,436,7302 Hube (issued: Jul. 25, 1995).
In an area related to the build job concept, various segments of a job are implemented through use of a job control sheet. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,528 to Sahay (Issued: Feb. 3, 1981) a control system is disclosed in which pre-printed, operator marked control sheets (otherwise corresponding to regular original documents sheets being copied) are fed together with regular documents by a copier document feeder so as to pass by an optical scanner connected to a corresponding copier controller. The documents sheets are copied in the manner instructed by the control sheets, without requiring manual switch inputs. In the meantime, copying of the control sheet itself is automatically inhibited.
In another instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,243,381 to Hube (Issued: Sep. 7, 1993) discloses a method including the steps of storing a set electronic pages in a memory section and assigning a unique job identifier to the stored job for indicating a location of the stored job in the memory section. The method further includes the steps of printing the job reference sheet so that the unique job identifier is designated on the job reference sheet in machine readable code and scanning the job reference sheet for reading the machine readable code to retrieve the set of electronic pages from the memory section for printing with a printer.
Other patents directed toward the use of control sheets to provide a job with control instructions include U.S. Pat. No. 4,970,554 to Rourke (issued Nov. 13, 1990) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,447 to Ojha (Issued: Jan. 22, 1991). While the '554 Patent employs the use of a bar-coded sheet for pointing to job instructions in memory, the '447 Patent provides a sheet in which the bar codes on a control sheet actually represent control instructions for a job.
Another system for providing a hardcopy document with embedded control instructions is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,161 to Forest et al. (Issued: Aug. 9, 1988). In the system of the '161 Patent, keysheets are interleaved into an original set of document sheets at positions for designating individual document sheets of the set. The keysheets have indicia means for identifying keysheet orientation in the set. An image capture device is used to scan the document sheets and keysheets for reading image information or "marks" associated therewith. When the presence of a keysheet is not sensed, a copy sheet of a first characteristic is supplied and when the presence of a keysheet is sensed, a copy sheet of a second characteristic is supplied.
The implementation of a job is greatly facilitated by the use of interleaved control sheets. Assuming that the developer of a job knows a manner in which the job is to be processed at a given image capture device, appropriate control sheets can be created and interleaved with a document stack. In turn, the supplemented stack can be introduced to the image capture device for processing in accordance with, for example the '582 or '161 Patents. Under certain circumstances, however, the developer of a job may wish to complete a job well after a significant portion of the job has already been captured. For example, the developer may, subsequent to the capture phase, wish to process a portion of the job and/or supplement the job with additional images. It would be desirable to provide an approach in which a job could be captured/structured and then supplemented with placeholding instructions, which placeholding instructions would be used to complete development of the job at a time subsequent to the capture phase.
The present invention is particularly suited for use in a network environment, such as in the context of the world wide web, the internet or the like. Examples of some recent patents relating to network environments of plural remote terminal shared users of networked printers include Xerox Corporation U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,483,653, 5,243,518, 5,226,112, 5,170,340 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,287,194. Some patents on this subject by others include U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,113,355, 5,113,494 (originally filed Feb. 27, 1987), 5,181,162 5,220,674, 5,247,670; 4,953,080 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,821,107. Further by way of background, some of the following Xerox.RTM. Corporation U.S. patents also include examples of networked systems with printers: 5,153,577; 5,113,517; 5,072,412; 5,065,347; 5,008,853; 4,947,345; 4,939,507; 4,937,036; 4,920,481; 4,914,586; 4,899,136; 4,453,128; 4,063,220; 4,099,024; 3,958,088; 3,920,895; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,597,071. Also noted are IBM Corp. U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,278 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,244, as well as Canon U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,458 and Jap. Pub. No. 59-63872 published Nov. 4, 1984. Some of these various above patents also disclose multi-functional printing systems.
Some other network system related publications include "Xerox Office Systems Technology" "Xerox 8000 Series Products: Workstations, Services, Ethernet, and Software Development" .COPYRGT.1982, 1984 by Xerox Corporation, OSD-R8203A, Ed. T. Linden and E. Harslem, with a "Table of Contents" citing its numerous prior publications sources, and an Abstract noting the April 1981 announcement of "the 8110 Star Informations System, A New Personal Computer . . . "; "Xerox System Integration Standard Printing Protocol XSIS 118404", April 1984; "Xerox Integrated Production Publishers Solutions: "Booklet No." 610P50807" "11/85"; "Printing Protocol-Xerox System Integration Standard" .COPYRGT.1990 by Xerox Corporation, XNSS 119005 May 1990; "Xerox Network Systems Architecture", "General Information Manual", XNSG 068504 April 1985, with an extensive annotated bibliography, .COPYRGT.1985 by Xerox Corporation; "Interpress: The Source Book", Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, New York, 1988, by Harrington, S. J. and Buckley, R. R.; Adobe Systems Incorporated "PostScript" Language Reference Manual", Addison-Wesley Co., 1990; "Mastering Novell" Netware.RTM.", 1990, SYBEX, Inc., Alameda, Calif. by Cheryl E. Currid and Craig A. Gillett; "Palladium Print System" .COPYRGT.MIT 1984, et sec; "Athena85" "Computing in Higher Education: The Athena Experience", E. Balkovich, et al, Communications of the ACM, 28(11) pp. 1214-1224, November, 1985; and "Apollo87 The Network Computing Architecture and System: An Environment for Developing Distributed Applications", T. H. Dineen, et al, Usenix Conference Proceedings, June 1987.
Noted regarding commercial network systems with printers and software therefor is the 1992 Xerox Corporation "Network Publisher" version of the 1990 "DocuTech.RTM." publishing system, including the "Network Server" to customer's Novell.RTM. 3.11 networks, supporting various different network protocols and "Ethernet"; and the Interpress Electronic Printing Standard, Version 3.0, Xerox System Integration Standard XNSS 048601 (Jan. 1986). Also, the much earlier Xerox Corporation "9700 Electronic Printing System"; the "VP Local Laser Printing" software application package, which, together with the Xerox "4045" or other Laser Copier/Printer, the "6085" "Professional Computer System" using Xerox Corporation "ViewPoint" or "GlobalView.RTM." software and a "local printer [print service] Option" kit, comprises the "Documenter" system. The even earlier Xerox Corporation "8000" "Xerox Network Services Product Descriptions" further describe other earlier Xerox Corporation electronic document printing systems. Eastman Kodak "LionHeart.RTM." systems, first announced Sep. 13, 1990, are also noted.
Current popular commercial published "systems software" with LAN workstation connections include Novell DOS 7.0, "Windows.RTM." NT 3.1, and IBM OS/2 Version 2.1.
All of the references designated in the above Background section are incorporated herein by reference.